Heir
by Just Slightly Obsessed
Summary: Mello had always wondered why he was still in the running as L's successor. It was only later that he realised, and by then, it was far too late. No yaoi.


**Hello. :) This is a Death Note fic focusing on the relationship between L and Mello - no yaoi - and set at a few different moments throughout the story. The first main moment is set shortly before the BB cases, the second shortly after, and the third is towards the end of the time that Light and Misa were being confined in prison. Sorry for the length - it didn't work as several chapters. Hope you enjoy!**

**WARNING: Spoilers for episodes 25 and 35 of the anime.**

**Disclaimer: If you recognise it, it isn't mine.**

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**Anyone who could see Near and Mello together would know instantly which was more likely to be L, the great detective.

Of course, neither of them was, and nothing had even been confirmed to say that either of them ever would be, but it was there all the same. Mello knew it. He could see it in the eyes of his peers, of his tutors, but especially in the cold, emotionless eyes of his rival.

Near was just better. At everything. He was smarter, he was more controlled, he was quicker, and he was younger. He even acted like L – Mello had seen Roger's secret smiles when Near crouched on a chair or used a percentage when making a decision. He made it his business to know as much about L as possible, storing it for later use. And the more he found out, the more he pictured L as an older version of Near.

So why was Mello even in the running?

He'd asked Roger this question several times, and himself even more frequently. It was only later, much later, when he was on the verge of death himself, that he finally saw it. Far too late.

There were three reasons why Mello was an heir to L.

The first reason was a swelteringly hot day in mid-June. English weather, typically unpredictably, had changed its mind at the last minute from a momentous downpour to a heat wave within the past two hours, and most of the Wammy kids were making the most of this unexpected sun. Not Mello. He was standing at a window, glaring down at the world outside with his nose pressed to the window, his fringe flopping down over his eyes.

He couldn't remember quite what had been infuriating him that day; probably Near again, as that was usually what got on his nerves that most. Possibly Matt had been telling him to let it go again, Roger not giving him a chance again. If he wasn't going to be L, what was the point in trying to be?

Staring out into the courtyard, he was suddenly astonished to see the enormous gates swing slowly open as a white car with darkened windows drove through them. He removed his face from the window, wiping the condensation from the glass in order to see better. The car slowly drove through the courtyard, stopping just outside the front door of the building.

Mello blinked, astonished, as Roger hurried outside, towards the car. The driver door opened and a man stepped out, dark hair, white shirt, slightly hunched over. Mello couldn't see his face, didn't recognise him at all. Roger stopped a little way in front of the man, there was a pause, and then they both headed inside.

He paused for one second exactly, before sprinting away to his room, thankful that hardly anyone else was around to see this. Slamming open the door, he leapt onto his bed and brought out a pair of headphones from under the mattress. He'd planted a wire tap in Roger's office long ago; he still found it hard to believe that nobody had done it before. It was as easy as falling asleep for him... easier, with all the things that troubled him at night.

Mello plastered the headphones over his ears, listening intently. The sound of a door opening, then Roger's voice, a scraping chair and the door closing again.

"...I had no idea you'd be coming here today."

"Neither did I." The visitor's voice was low and soft, almost bored in its lack of expression. "I'm sorry to spring a visit on you at no notice like this."

"No, no, not at all." Roger opened his desk drawer. "I'm just surprised that you were able to visit us at all."

"My next case was supposed to be in Birmingham, but apparently a man admitted to the crime yesterday. He's innocent, but I decided I might as well take the time to come and pay a quick visit before they realise and make some sort of announcement calling me back again."

Mello's eyes slowly widened to the size of dinner plates. Next case...? Surely, it couldn't be...

"Of course. It's always good to see you, L."

There was a pause, during which Mello realised his jaw had dropped. Embarrassed, he closed it, glancing around to check there was nobody watching despite the fact he knew there wouldn't be.

"You too, Roger. It has been too long."

"So was there a particular reason for your coming?"

"Not especially, although I admit I would like to be able to check up on my potential successors. How are they?"

"Well, well." There was a rustling of paper; Mello assumed Roger was retrieving files of some description from his desk. "They have been keeping to their usual activities."

"How is Near?"

Mello felt his face turn red with rage and shame. So L knew about Near, did he? Of course. What had he expected? Near was the best, after all. That jumped up little...

"As Near is. He's excelling, again, in every area. He is quite simply the best we have here." Another rustle; the passing over of a file. L made a slight noise of interest, and then there was another pause while he read. Mello found himself biting his tongue to stop tears from slipping down his cheeks. Nobody ever gave him a chance. He could never overtake Near. He would never live up to L.

L's next words were loud enough to make Mello jump. "And how about Mello?"

Mello's heart skipped a beat, before increasing to ten times his normal heart rate. L was standing right next to his wire tap, holding Near's file... and asking about him. Asking about _him. _He almost forgot to breathe.

"Mello is doing well. Exceptionally well, in fact, just behind Near in everything, and far ahead of the next in line. But he's just-"

"Not quite there yet," L finished, his voice thoughtful. "Do you know why that is?"

"I suppose it would be because he's emotional. In far too many of the tests we've set him has he taking an instinctive feeling towards something, and tried to fit the evidence to fit his theory, rather than the other way round."

"Whereas Near uses his logic for everything," L muttered. "Feelings just get in the way."

Mello felt like he was going to die from the pain in his chest. He felt like screaming at the floor, "OKAY, SO NEAR'S A FREAKISHLY AMAZING WONDERCHILD! GIVE ME A CHANCE!"

"So, when do you expect to come to a final conclusion?"

"I can't promise anything right now, Roger."

_Why? _Mello yelled internally. _Why do you have to drag it out, L? Everyone knows it's going to be Near, everyone knows you're just messing with my mind! Has it even occurred to you that I might not want to spend my whole life waiting for you to tell me I'm not good enough?_

"With all due respect, L... surely Near is the ideal candidate for your successor?"

"Again, I'm afraid I can't promise anything. Near is, indeed, a highly suitable candidate. But Mello too interests me, and I cannot yet distinguish a definite successor from the two of them."

There was another pause.

"Near is the better in every respect."

"In every respect that can be recorded, of course. That much is clear." L's voice grew louder as he spoke, until he was almost on top of the wire tap. "But Mello continues to interest me. His determination must be strong, still hoping to become L despite his apparent inferiority to Near."

Mello nodded frantically, while holding his breath and hoping desperately that L wouldn't find the wire tap.

"I suppose. Still..."

Roger was interrupted by a plain ringing phone.

"Ah. Please excuse me." The ringing stopped. "Hello? Good. I'll be right there. Thank you, Wateri." A beep. "It's been sorted out. I need to leave for Birmingham immediately."

"Of course. Do you need anything?"

"No, thank you. I have everything I need." L's voice became quieter again; there was another rustle as he handed the papers back to Roger. "It was good to see you, Roger."

"You too, L."

There was a pause, before the door opened and closed again. Mello waited, but there was no more noise from within the office. L was gone.

Not quite gone.

Frantically, Mello leapt off the bed and ran back to the window where he'd first seen L from. The man was now getting into his car, Roger turning back to the building and heading inside. Mello stood on tiptoes, desperately trying to catch a glimpse of the face of his idol.

L paused, and turned his head up to the window where Mello was staring from.

Mello saw L, every detail of his face, and remembered it. His pale skin, black mop of hair, black eyes with dark bags beneath them. This was L. This was his dream.

The corner of L's mouth turned up.

Then he was gone again, behind the dark windows of the car, through the gates and onto the streets.

Mello stayed there until the sun had long disappeared beneath the horizon.

The second reason was an autumn day of the next year. The most important day of Mello's life, as far as he was concerned. The day he had been waiting for since the time he had first seen L's face.

Today was the day he would speak to L.

The whole of Wammy's house knew of the visit, but most of them didn't know that Near and Mello had been granted private audiences with the detective. If they had, there would have been mass chaos – not what Roger liked.

Mello was waiting by the window for three hours before the white car finally appeared at the gates again. When it finally did, he felt like he was going to faint from fear and anticipation. He had to grip onto the windowsill tightly to prevent himself from falling over.

But when the door opened downstairs, and the first orphans began to run through the building to reach L, Mello turned and ran too.

He stopped at the top of the staircase, looking down at L and the kids that surrounded him, their faces eager, afraid, excited. L himself looked just the same as he had one year ago, tired but happy, smiling gently at the orphans and walls around him.

It had never really occurred to Mello that this place was home to L too.

L glanced up at him for a second, inclining his head so slightly that nobody else would have noticed. It was a nod of recognition, of promise. _We'll talk later. _Mello's heart beat faster just at the thought of the meeting.

"Wow. Some guy, huh?"

Mello turned his head sharply in surprise at Matt's voice, suddenly beside him. "Dammit, Matt, don't do that!"

Matt grinned, half sitting on the banister. "Scared you, didn't I? For a genius, you're pretty unobservant, Mells."

"Shuddup," Mello muttered, returning his gaze to L, who was shaking hands with Roger as though they hadn't met in years. Mello knew better. Mello was the _only_ one who knew better. He smiled smugly.

"What you laughing at?"

"Nothing."

"Oh, c'mon. Nobody laughs at nothing."

"Many laugh at the contents of your brain, Matt."

"Cheers," the boy muttered cooly. He glanced down at L. "So this is the famous detective, huh? Exhausted, slouched, surrounded by kids and grinning like a maniac?"

Mello looked at Matt silently, almost daring him to say something against L.

Matt grinned. "I like him already."

Nodding, Mello retrieved a bar of chocolate from his pocket and tore off the wrapper. "Yeah," he muttered. "I know what you mean."

Time crawled by that day. L spent a couple of hours in the largest sitting room, chatting to the other orphans in his low, quiet voice. Mello stayed in the same room, lounging on a sofa in the corner, feeling extremely self-conscious as he tried to appear cool and composed while hanging on every word of L's that he could catch beneath the irksome beeping of Matt's handheld game. He had no idea if L was even looking in his direction or not, but he liked to pretend that every so often, the older guy glanced over at him.

Near didn't even show his face.

At four, L left the room to go and 'talk to Wateri and Roger'. Four was the time for Near's appointment, Mello knew, and the next hour was a difficult one for him. Twice he snapped at Matt for no reason, becoming so touchy that even his laid-back best friend decided it would be best to stay completely silent.

And then...

"Mello?"

Mello jumped up from his sofa so quickly it looked like a pin had been stuck in him. "Yes, Roger?"

"I'd like to see you in my office, if I may?"

"Of course." Mello hurried over, heart pounding like a jackhammer on steroids. It was now. It was now. It was now...

Roger led Mello towards his office at an excruciatingly slow pace. He could feel his face grow steadily darker with each snail-pace step, but he managed to keep his temper with the thought that any minute, he would be talking with the man who had haunted his dreams even before he'd known what the detective looked like, patting him on the shoulder or smiling and saying, "Mihael, you are my successor."

It wouldn't be now. But soon.

Finally, _finally, _Roger came to his office, and opened the door. Mello hurried inside, not even looking at Roger, eyes focused firmly on the man before him, back turned away.

The door closed with a click.

A pause.

"Hi, Mello."

Hi. It wasn't the sort of word Mello would expect L to use, really, but then again 'Hello, Mello,' would have sounded very stupid. He'd got that a lot from the other kids when he was younger – it hadn't taken long to get them to shut up, but it would've been much more difficult to tell L that he didn't like the rhyming and nicknames that he was given, and, oh crap, he was supposed to be replying...

"Hi. L."

L turned and smiled at him, a proper smile, and Mello could feel his own face breaking out into a grin. His idol, his dream, his mentor...

"Take a seat."

"Thanks." Mello moved forwards and sat on the chair in front of Roger's desk. L himself did not sit down, but remained standing slouched behind the chair opposite Mello.

"I'm sure it has come to your attention that you are one of two possible successors to my title, in the inevitable event of my death."

"Yeah, I know."

"And you may also be aware that your fellow candidate is the boy going by the name of Near."

"Yeah. I know."

"Hmmm. Then it will hardly be a surprise to you to learn that you are currently in second place."

Mello gripped the armrests of the chair he was sitting on. "No. It's not a surprise."

L looked at him with intense eyes. "Interesting."

"What's interesting?"

"Your reaction. You already knew this information, indeed, you probably learned this a long time ago and have sought Near out as your opponent. Yet you still feel anger at the prospect of his being better than you."

"Isn't that natural?" Mello muttered sullenly. "Nobody likes to lose."

"No." L studied him closely. "They don't."

There was another pause. Mello felt another bout of self-consciousness, and dropped his eyes to the floor.

"Hmmm." L moved over to the desk and opened a file. Mello glanced up and saw the photograph of himself aged nine clipped to the front. "According to this, your extremely high IQ and analytical skills make you Near's equal, not to mention your physical aptitude and social skills – an area which I must admit both Near and I are sadly lacking in." He chuckled softly; Mello frowned at the closeness of Near's name with L's within his sentence. "However, your emotions, apparently, get in the way." L glanced up. "How do you feel about this?"

Mello shrugged. "What can I say? I'm not a robot like Near." The words came out before he could stop them, and he bit his tongue, looking up at L apprehensively. He suddenly realised how open he'd been to L, despite wanting to give a certain impression.

"No. You're certainly not a robot." L turned away from Mello, and for a moment Mello felt terrified that he'd offended L. Then he remembered; L was like Near. No emotion. A tiny comment like that couldn't possibly have offended him, especially not one made by a fourteen year old kid.

He tried to start again. "... Mr L, I'm sorry. I'm not very good with manners or self-control... I guess you already know that. And I know that's why I'm not the first successor to your legacy, and I'm trying to learn to control it, but it's hard. And Near, he doesn't have to change anything about himself to become like you, so it's easier for him. But I really, really want to be your successor, you can't imagine how much."

There was silence. L still had his back turned.

Mello bit his lip slightly, tears welling up in his eyes and threatening to spill down his cheeks. "I'm sorry. I'll go."

He stood up and turned around, heading towards the door. He'd failed.

"Don't go."

Mello froze, hardly daring to believe that what he was hearing was true.

A cold hand grasped his wrist; he jumped slightly and turned to see L standing right next to him, examining him closely, with something that looked like fascination. Mello felt his eyes widen, and he stiffened as his heart began to pound.

L lifted a hand to Mello's face and wiped a tear away slowly with his thumb. "You're crying."

"Yeah." His voice sounded bitter. "Isn't that natural?"

"Nobody likes to lose." To Mello's surprise, L sounded slightly humoured. "Nobody likes to lose."

One hand still holding Mello's wrist, L turned the chair around and clambered up onto it before crouching down and looking up at Mello. "I don't like to lose either, Mello. I never have, and I never will. And that's a good thing."

Mello blinked. "Huh?"

L smiled at him. "Listen carefully. You're idealizing me to the point of your main goal being to become like me, L the man, when your potential is to success L the letter. You know that."

"Yes, but... I want to be like you!" Mello looked down at L with earnest eyes. "And Near's more like you anyway, whether you're talking about the letter or not. You've met him; you know just as well as I do."

"There are aspects which we share," L admitted.

"So why do I even bother?" Fresh tears were threatening to spill over.

"Because Near isn't L yet. Neither are you. At this point, either of you could be L."

"What?"

"I'm serious. You may not be quite as 'good' as Near," he explained, making quotation marks with one hand, "but you're better than him in other ways."

"Like what?"

He smiled, hair falling into his eyes. "Intuition. Emotion. Passion. Inspiration."

Mello snorted, despite himself. "What have any of them got to do with anything? They don't help, they get in the way. You said it yourself."

"I also said that Near was better in every way that can be recorded."

"Yeah, I know, but..." Mello froze. L was looking up at him with a knowing grin. He licked his lips slowly.

"I heard Roger talking to someone about it."

"Yes. Talking to me, actually." L chuckled. "You're so much more like me than you think, Mello."

"You're serious?"

"Near didn't plant a wire tap in Roger's office, did he? I spoke to Near for half an hour in here about his successes and methods, then he left. I'll tell you a secret, Mello – I'm much more interested in you than I am in Near. Near may be closer to being L than you are, but maybe the world doesn't need another L. Maybe it needs an M."

Mello just stared. "Wow. "

L smiled, before letting go of Mello's wrist, reaching back towards the desk and taking a chocolate from an open box that Mello hadn't seen before. "Would you like one, Mello?"

Mello couldn't answer. L had just told him that he, Mello, could replace him...

The young man shrugged. "Ah well, suit yourself. " He bit into the chocolate delicately, licking invisible traces of it from the corners of his mouth. "Mm. Mello, why don't you take a seat in that chair? There's something I'd like to tell you."

It was an hour and a half before Mello finally left the office, practically reeling in shock from what he'd been told. He staggered to his room, opened the door and collapsed on the bed, only just missing Matt, who appeared to have been waiting in his room for his return.

"Man, I've been looking for you everywhere! Where've you been? Woah... what the hell happened to you?"

He explained, or at least, some of it. He said that L had told him he had as much potential as Near, and that they'd talked for a while. Matt had demanded to know exactly what L was like to talk to alone, and Mello had no problem with relating all the little things that made L a little bit too far over the other side of strange. After all, they weren't personal.

After a while, Matt stopped him. "So basically what you're saying is, L – L, the great detective, super genius and every criminal's worst nightmare – invited you to have a private chat in which he told you that you had the potential to be the new him, and then offered you chocolate?"

"Yeah. That's pretty much what happened."

Matt laughed. "Heck, when are you getting married to this guy?"

Mello hit him. Then he changed the subject.

The third reason was a night in July.

He couldn't sleep. It wasn't the first night in the past week that he'd spent awake, somehow boiling one moment and freezing the next. Mello wondered absently if he was coming down with something as he rolled over for the millionth time that night, fidgety and distracted by the quiet yet irritating snores coming from Matt's bed.

Gritting his teeth, he tried again, pulling the blankets tightly around his neck and shutting his eyes defiantly. He wasn't going to let himself move until he fell asleep. Life was so boring when you were confined to one space.

There was a knock at the front door.

Mello's eyes flipped open. Had he heard correctly, or was his bored mind making things up again?

No. There it was again, echoing through the wooden floors of the house, quiet yet very audible against the complete silence of the night. The taps were quick, urgent, almost desperate. Whoever was at the door at this time of night was here on some important errand; maybe one from L.

L. At the very thought that this could be anything to do with the detective, the sheets were off and Mello was tiptoeing out of his room, along the corridor to the enormous staircase. He heard a muttering and hurried footsteps as Roger made towards the front door to answer it. A third knock, even more desperate this time. Mello waited with bated breath, hardly daring to hope that this messenger might have something to do with L... maybe something to do with _him._

The door opened. Roger gave a small gasp as a man walked straight in, hair and clothes soaked.

"I'm sorry, Roger. I had to come. I didn't know what else to do..."

Mello's nails were suddenly biting into his palm. It was L.

"Why- I mean..." Roger seemed to be uncertain of what to say for a moment before shaking his head and closing the door. "Come to my office."

The words sounded severe, but L's voice was saturated with relief when he replied. "Thank you."

Mello frowned as the two men retreated to Roger's office. Whatever L was doing here, it had to be serious. There had been no engine, which meant that he had walked here in the middle of the night. Besides, despite there being no confirmation of the rumours which had been spreading, everyone knew that they were true. With a case as large as the one which was being carried out in Japan right now, L would have to be there, right at the centre of it.

So what was he doing here?

He considered for a moment. At L's request, he had removed the wire tap from Roger's office. L had clearly not wanted Mello to be able to listen in on private conversations in there. But Mello so badly wanted to know what was going on, what had made L leave a case as important as the Kira case, merely to come back to England.

It only took a second for him to make his decision. Silently, he slipped down the stairs and hastened towards the office. The door was shut, but Mello crouched carefully outside it, pressing an ear to the wood and straining to hear the conversation.

"Would you like some tea?"

"Please."

A few tea-related noises followed – spoons chinking, a few splashes as numerous sugar cubes fell into liquid. Then silence.

A tentative pause.

"I can't do it."

"What can't you do?" Roger's response was direct, but kind.

"The case."

Another pause.

"I know who it is."

"Then prove it and be done."

"I can't prove it." L took a slurp of tea. "He's too smart for that. And he's in such a position that accusing him would get me nowhere, and he's so adamant that he isn't Kira, and it's so impossible that he is Kira that he must be Kira, but I have no proof."

Mello blinked. L's voice was shaking as he spoke. He was rambling; hell, he hadn't even noticed Mello was listening outside yet. He'd never dreamed that L could ever be like this. L could do everything. L could solve anything.

L was scared.

"You've faced hard cases before," Roger reminded him. "What's so different about this one? Just find some evidence. How hard can it be?"

"Hard. Too hard." Another slurp. "And he knows I know it's him. He's doing everything in his power to prove that he's not the murderer."

"Such as?"

"Helping with the case. Giving all the right answers to all of my questions. Locking himself up for weeks to prove that people still died without him."

There was yet another pause.

"L, has it occurred to you that..?"

"It is him, I know it is. It has to be. He looks at me like I'm his enemy, but calls me his friend. He had access to police information from the start. He's as intelligent as Kira is. It all fits."

A cup fell to the floor and smashed. Mello winced at the noise. A chair scraped back, as someone stood up to avoid the broken pieces of china.

"I'm sorry," L said softly.

"Don't worry. I'll clean it up later." Roger sighed. "L, if he was locked up for so long and the murders continued, you know it can't be-"

"But it is, Roger. It is, and I can't prove it. And because it's him, and because I'm standing in the way... it's like Beyond."

Mello jumped violently.

"Beyond? You mean..."

"Backup, BB, Beyond Birthday. He came so close to destroying me. If it hadn't been for Naomi Misora, he would have, and she's already been taken care of by Kira." L's voice was becoming increasingly desperate as he spoke. "He talked about things that couldn't possibly exist. Death gods, shinigami. Kira – the second Kira – mentioned them."

"Slow down."

"Shinigami. Naomi Misora. It's all happening again, only this time it's going wrong."

Mello's heart began thudding in his chest. He had never, ever seen L like this, never imagined L like this. Afraid, panicking, sounding nothing like L.

"I am going to die."

The words seemed to trigger something in Mello. Before he knew what he was doing he had burst into the room, running towards L, and launched himself at the detective, hugging him desperately. He heard Roger's shout of surprise, felt L tense up as he wrapped his arms around him tightly.

"You can't die," he whispered, feeling tears spring to his eyes. "You can't die."

A hand gripped the back of his shirt and pulled him away from L. Roger glared down at him. "How long have you been here? What were you doing?"

"I-"

"Leave." Roger pulled Mello towards the door. "I'll deal with you in the morning."

"Wait."

Roger stopped. Mello turned to look at L, who was staring at him with wide eyes. Slowly, he reached up to run a hand through his soaked hair.

"You're right," he muttered quietly, thoughtfully. "I can't die. Kira can't win this."

Mello bit his lip. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be." L slowly got down from his chair and headed towards Mello, crouching again as he reached him. Mello was suddenly reminded of the conversation they had had just over half a year ago, remembering the thrill of hearing L name him as a potential successor.

L looked straight up into Mello's eyes. "I promise you that I will catch Kira. Understood?"

Mello nodded.

"Good." He stood up again, indicating that Mello should leave. Shaking himself free from Roger, Mello turned to leave the room.

"L?"

"Yes?"

Mello clenched his fist, summing up all the anger and resentment he'd ever felt towards Near and Roger and even L himself. "You're going to catch him, and you're going to reveal his identity, and you're going to have him executed. And then you're going to come back here and tell me what happened. Understood?"

Another pause. Then:

"I understand." L was smiling; Mello could tell by his voice. "Until then, Mello."

When he found out, Mello couldn't feel anything but disbelief.

He left before the words could sink in, before what had happened fully registered in his mind. Even once the last tears had dried on his cheeks, he couldn't understand. It had all been for nothing. Why had L even bothered? Making promises, telling him he still had a chance. L was a liar. He could leave Near to follow L's path, to sit in a room with computers and cameras. He was going to go his own way, and he was going to win.

It was only later, much later, while sitting staring at the news programme which was flashing images of Matt's mangled car that he thought. He thought about L, and how he'd told Mello about his past, the stories that surrounded his deepest fears. The way his voice had shaken when he talked about Kira, the way he broke the cup.

And as he felt the sudden pain in his chest, the agony that shot straight through his heart as though something had impaled it, that was when he realised.

He could have been L. He'd been kept in the running because he was needed. Both Near and Mello had been L's successors, as the letter and the man respectively. Near had the brains, the speed, the ability to remain detached from his work. Mello had the drive, the sense of justice, the emotion. They were both like L.

And ultimately, he thought, ironically, Mello had won. Because when L had died, the letter had moved on, passed onto another man. In the same way, Near, when he caught Kira, would close the case and move on again, find a new investigation to carry out.

The man, the one who had started it all, the one who had saved maybe thousands of lives, the one who had given his life to stopping Kira, had been killed. So had Mello.

And Near would always have to live with that. To know that, in his first great case, maybe the greatest case of all time, it was Mello who had been killed, Mello who had given up his life, like L, to save the world, while Near had simply used what the two of them had done to present his case. Near was continuing the legacies of L and Mello. Which put him second.

Next to L. His mentor. His inspiration. His idol.

_Ha._


End file.
